What goes up must come down
by HalcyonBird
Summary: Snake arrives to the circus and has difficulty finding his place in this new family. But with the help of a young girl, he catches a glimpse of peace before learning a lesson the hard way. One-shot, slight SnakexOC.


**Disclaimer:** I do not own Kuroshitsuji but I do own my OC Feather

It's been a long since I've been planning to post this story! I really like Snake and I thought he deserved more attention.^^

The story takes place before the manga, when Snake arrived at the circus. This is a one-shot with slight SnakexOC but you can't call it romance because …er… Well you'll see if you read!

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><p><em><strong>What goes up must come down<strong>_

Darkness, Loneliness, Angst, Despair

Those were the only feelings Snake experienced in his cage; trapped and treated like he wasn't even a living being. Lack of food, lack of space, lack of everything necessary to survive, the only thing preventing him from going mad was the reassuring presence of his cold-blooded friends. Until one day a ray of hope pierced his night; until a skeleton hand brought him out of his iron prison.

"So everyone, we have a new comrade!"

All the circus members were gathered around a joyful red-haired man, pushing to have a better view; impatient to discover their new co-worker. Said newbie was petrified, unused to having so many people staring at him. His cow was twitching in anticipation.

"His scene name will be Snake!" Joker added proudly while pointing at the hybrid man beside him with a fleshless finger.

A name. Snake had forgotten his a long time ago; or maybe he was never given one. He was just referred has "a beast". This nice attention made him blush a little. He was happy. At least he thought happiness was the feeling he was experiencing since it was the first time he was in this state of lightness. Even though the name he was given made him sound like an animal, it gave a proof that his existence had been acknowledged; he wasn't "some random freak" anymore. He was Snake.

"So let's make the presentations already" Joker continued, his grin still plastered on his face

Snake did his best to remember all the new faces and names. First there was Dagger, the playful nife-thrower, then Beast, the sulfurous tiger-tamer but also Jumbo the tall fire-eater, Peter and Wendy the mischievous trapeze artistes and finally Doll the cute tightrope walker.

"This is the main team but there are many other interesting people here!" The young red-haired said patting Snake's back. The silver-haired hybrid shivered, unused to this physical contact.

"From now on, we are your family"

"Family?" Snake repeated slowly.

A rush of warmth invaded his body at these words. He and his friends had finally found a place to belong to. As grateful as he was to these strangers who kindly helped him, he was unable to say a word and stayed silent while the crowd slowly dismissed, everyone going back to their casual activities.

After Joker showed him his tent and asked him to keep an eye on his snakes so that they wouldn't hurt the other artists, the young man realized he hadn't introduced said snakes, who were now a bit upset at him for not giving them more attention. He was so stressed back then and so used to their presence that he had completely forgotten the existence of his most precious comrades for a few minutes.

"Everyone, I'm sorry" he told them

Hissing, the reptiles started coiling around him a little more, making him understand that his excuses were accepted.

**~xOx~**

Snake decided, on Goethe's request to explore the circus a little. His tent was situated next to the beasts' cages where mostly Beast's tigers were resting, their feline eyes glowing in the dim light of the evening.

Walking past a few tents, he overheard a conversation between Wendy and Peter.

"Have you seen his skin, just like a snake, it's disgusting!" The young girl said sounding scared.

"How can such a creature exist?" The boy added.

Snake eyes widened; how could he have thought he would be accepted so easily? Even if he was glad to be here, even if it was better than his cage, he felt sadness overwhelm him as he realized he still wasn't considered as a human being.

As the rain started pouring, Snake didn't go back to his tent, ignoring his friend's protests. Wandering with no goal against the cold; soaked, water running on his cursed body and tears escaping his supernatural eyes, he wished he could be normal; he even ended up wishing he was never born.

But suddenly, the cold drops stopped hitting his head and when he looked up, he saw the dark waterproof fabric of an umbrella.

"You'll catch a cold if you stay under the rain like this."

Snake turned back to meet eyes with a young girl. She didn't look away, nor did she look scared when her caramel eyes met dark green reptilian ones. Instead, she smiled gently.

"Your eyes are really beautiful." She complimented

Snake blushed. It was the first time someone praised his unusual appearance and it made him truly happy that a young and quite beautiful girl was talking to him without fear.

She was thin and slender, quiet tall, probably around 18 and she was wearing a lacy skirt, decorated with feathers and a large ribbon on the right. One stripped and one plain black stocking were covering her legs, held up by suspender-belts. Her shoes were low boots with green and blue feathers on the side. Her top wasn't covering her stomach, showing a flat and quite fit belly tattooed with an elegant arabesque. She had a plunging neckline and her top was adorned with a small bow on the center and decorated with black and white strips on the right side.

Finally, her pretty face was enhanced with elaborate make up, her lips of a dark crimson and her lashes adorned with dark feathers.

"Are you new here?" her soft voice echoed in Snake's ears.

He still didn't know what to say, words unable to escape his mouth. So he let his friends talk for him.

"He is Snake, says Oscar." He stammered

The girl blinked, slightly surprised by this answer.

"Do you refer to yourself with third person? Interesting !" She exclaimed, lips nicely curved.

"No, this is Snake and I'm Oscar." Snake said, Oscar pointing at him and then at itself with its tail.

The girl stayed clueless for a few seconds before her grin widened.

"Ehh, so you are the new Snake-tamer who can talk to snakes!"

"Nice to meet you, I'm Feather." She added, bowing slightly, just like a princess would.

Snake blushed a little at the sight of this gracious gesture.

"Instead of staying here, you should watch tonight's show, it's about to start."

Feather took his hand without hesitating, its warmth comforting against his cold skin, this suddenness making his heart skip a beat.

"Come!" She added joyfully before she started running.

**~xOx~**

Under the big top, in the backstage, it was an effervescence of costumes, accessories and artists; everyone getting ready for the show as the tier was filling with spectators of all ages.

Snake was surprised by the number of people in the audience. He never thought the circus could be so popular and he felt a pain in his stomach at the thought that one day these eyes would be riveted on him.

Feather lead him to a calmer part of the backstage where he could have a great view of the actual stage. The brunette finally let go off his hand, giving Snake a feeling of emptiness.

"Just stay here and enjoy the show okay?"

She smiled at him warmly, this brightness giving her companion the same feeling as the summer sun on his cold scales. She then started walking away, turning her back to him. But he didn't want her to leave, for he didn't want to be left alone again and her presence was reassuring him.

"Where are you going?" He asked in a voice full of emotion, extending a hand towards the slender fading figure before regaining his composure slightly and adding "Says Wilde".

He just couldn't do it. He was too afraid to talk himself, to show his own feelings, share his own thoughts with the rest of the world, so he let his snakes talk for him or sometimes pretended they were the ones talking to hide, just like the coward he really was. Because even if his blood was cold, his heart was beating fast and even if he was dangerous, he was the one who was afraid.

Feather turned back, her eyes meeting reptile ones again to their delight.

"I'm also part of the show! You'll see, my performance is the best!" She said proudly "But my specialty is a secret you'll have to wait to discover…" She added winking at him before disappearing into the bustle.

**~xOx~**

Feather walked lightly to the rest of the troupe, ready to start the show. But the tongues were already wagging and no one noticed her arriving.

"What is Snake doing here?" Dagger questioned

"Feather brought him" answered the twins in unison

"Feather?" Beast asked before sighing. "She is quite annoying; always trying to seduce every man, of every appearance and age! She is just a little tease who uses the pretty face she was luckily given; a child who wants to attract attention."

"You are quite harsh Beast, even if sadly kind of right. But if she makes Snake feel at ease here, we can't say it's a bad thing." Joker replied

"I just hope that after toying with him she won't throw him away like a broken doll. The last thing this guy needs is a broken heart. If he even has a heart…" The tiger-tamer bitterly commented

Feather approached closer and seemed to brush the statement she heard off.

"Everyone, let's do our best again today!" She beamed at her comrades, her smile never fading.

**~xOx~**

Snake sat comfortably on a trunk, watching the show with admiration; fascinated. At first Joker came into view to announce the first act after juggling a bit and making the audience roar with laughter. The first act was performed by the fire-eating man. Then came the twins, flying and making the audience gasp before Dagger threw a few knives less than an inche away from his assistant's limbs and head. The audience then held their breath as Doll performed her dangerous but so gracious act. And finally, Beast used her whip to tame wild tigers and lions before making a man in the audience come on stage to perform with her.

But the silver-haired man couldn't enjoy the show as much as he would have wanted, for he felt slight deception crawl into him each time a new artist, who wasn't Feather, was making his entrance. He was longing to see her slender figure and her sparkling eyes. Curiosity was eating him; he needed to know what her act was.

After a clown performance, just after Beast left the stage, the light suddenly went out and a gentle blue light appeared 20 meters-high under the big top. There she was, tightly wrapped in two large pieces of midnight blue silk; Feather that Snake was dying to see. The young man felt his heart rate increase at the only sight of her beautiful forms erotically dangled in the soft silk.

Then, music was heard, the Nutcracker, Waltz of the Flowers, a very recent ballet masterpiece of Tchaikovsky. Feather started twirling around the ribbon flexibly, doing splits and lots of other gymnastic moves, spinning, turning, rotating upside down gracefully. Sometimes she would use only one of the silk pieces, sometimes both and she even stroke a few alluring poses from time to time.

Snakes couldn't look away; he couldn't take his eyes off her mesmerizing movements. If he was a snake-tamer, she was worst; she had the power to bewitch humans. She was like his weakness; her every move like the sweat notes of a snake-manipulating flute.

Not a single noise could be heard. Even tired little children were watching with attention.

When the climax of the act arrived, loud "Ah!"s and "Oh!"s could be heard from the crowd as Feather, who had rolled her entire body up into the blue fabric let herself fall in free fall. Spinning, the silk undid itself as the girl played with the fire, taunting the laws of gravity. She stopped her fall abruptly around 10 meters, almost midway and wrapped herself higher again for the show-stopper where she would stop only a few inches from the ground.

It was almost over. She tightened her grip on the silky fabric and after taking a deep breath, she started spinning down-way for the last time.

But suddenly, instead of loud applause and cheering, horror cries filled the big top. Snake's breathing stopped and his mind shut down. He couldn't believe what he was seeing.

In the middle of the stage, a pale body surrounded by midnight blue silk was lying, lifeless. Crimson blood was slowly spreading, painting the sand around the accident's victim. The show was ended, the big top evacuated.

What happened? Snake wondered baffled. How could she die like this? She seemed so confident and at ease, and the next second, her life had vanished.

"She knew the risks too well, those are the occupational hazards" Joker told the troupe bitterly

All the artists left in a dark mood, leaving Snake alone. Taking a closer look at Feather's face, the young man saw her smile still beaming at him, her crimson lips curved nicely but her eyes lacking of light; empty.

**Empty.**

That was how he felt now that the person who took his hand was gone; now that her skin was as cold as his, he felt all the happiness he had touched upon vanish. She could have been his friend, a normal one for once! But it was his fate, doomed to be treated as a monster, never accepted.

His hopes flew away, reaching heights that nor he, nor Feather were able to reach. And he learned one lesson: Like Feather's success, like the events of his life…

… _**Things that go up will always come down**_

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><p>Why must I make all my OC die? I'm such a horrible person…<p>

Anyways, hope you like it!

Please leave a review if you can, I long to know what you thought of my writing and plot so I can improve. I really enjoy your opinions and constructive criticism.^^


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